Footstep-corrector.



P. H. RUSS.

FOOTSTEP GORREGTOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 25, 1914.

1,1 18,058. Patented Nov. 24, 1914.

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WITNESSES l/VVE/VTOH I F HENRY Russ.

r A ITORNEYS THE NORRIS PETERS CO. FHOTO-LITHQ. WASHINGTON, D. C

1 FRANK HENRY RUSS, or EW YORK, N. Y.

FOOTSTEP-CORRECTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented NOV, 24, 1914;.

Application filed May 25, 1914. Serial No. 840,936.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK HENRY Ross, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kingsand State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Footstep-Correctors, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in footwear; and is particularlydesigned both to prevent and to cure the deformity due to the falling orbreaking down of the arch comprising the bones in the human foot betweenthe ball and the heel of the same.

As 1 shall set forth fully hereinafter, I

tomatically compels people using it, efi'ec-' tively thoughunconsciously to get into the habit of making their footsteps correctly;thus obviating the out-toeing evil.

The above and. other objects and advantages of my invention will appearfrom the following specification, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings; which illustrate one or more embodiments of myinventive idea; the same characters of reference being employed toindicate the same parts throughout the several views. On said drawingsFigure 1 is a bottom plan of one form of my invention, showing itapplied to the heel of a shoe for the left foot; Fig. 2 is a side view,showing my invention applied to a shoe intended forthe right foot; theouter. side of the same being presented to the observer; Fig. 3 is aview similar to Fig. 2,

Fig. 4:, like Fig. .1, is a bottom plan, but showing a modified formofmy invention;

the heel being the left heelas before; and.

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the linev 55 of Fig. 4.

I wish to state at the outsetthatby observinghow large a proportion ofcivilized people, accustomed-to wearing shoes, suffer from misplacedbones in the arches or insteps of their feet; and that uncivilizedpeople not in thehabit of wearing shoes rarely ever suffer suchdiscomforts; I was led to an investigation to determine the cause ofsuch troubles. First I discovered that 'shoeless races invariably walkwith their feet parallel to each other; the toes pointing straightahead; while shoe-wear-.

ing races generally walk with their. toes everted or turned more or'lessoutward from parallel position. I' then concluded that a carefulexaminationof the anatomy of the foot. and the difference in the effectson the arch thereof produced'by walking with the toes everted or turnedoutward;

and by walking with the toes parallel, would reveal the chiefcauses offallen and deformed arches. My conclusion was "correct. as proven below.

The normal foot, when bared. and made wet on the bottomor sole; and thenpressed on a smooth.- dry surfaceywill make a print of theheel. theouter portion of the middle of the underside of the foot; and the ballof the foot; together with the bottoms-of: the toe-tips pressingdownward as one moves.

fore the'weight-bearing portion of the foot must be none other than thatpart which touches the surface mentioned andmakes a mark when wet.Furthermore, when a per son stands with feet parallel. toes directhforward. it is verv noticeable that the bodys weight is felt chiefly onthe outer side of the bottom of the foot :but very little on the innerside, directly below the arch. This conclusion is quite contrary to thearch-prop idea; which many have assumed to be true; but without proof.Hence, a pedestrian, walking with the feet straight ahead or parallel isconstantlv bearing his weight on the outer portions of the bottoms orsoles of his feet; so that his arches are. never oven strained; butsimply bear sufficient weight to keep themlfieXible. Onthe other.- hand,

the" pedestrian,lwhogwvalk ith h s Ede-S turned outward concentrates thelarger part of his weight on the inner portions of the soles of hisfeet, directly below the arches; and with every step forward, an inwardrolling action of the inner portions below the arches takes place. Thisresults in an undue strain in the ligaments that bind the jointstogether. After a While, the ligaments become stretched out longer thannormal; making it possible for one or more of the arch bones to projectinward and out of natural position; seriously interfering with thearticulation of the joints; and producing strain, pressure orimpingement of one or more nerves, with the pains usual in such cases.Now the out-toeing of shoe-wearers is largely due to the round, hardedge of shoe-heels; for the majority of pedestrians strike the back edgeof the shoe-heel first. Then the toe of the shoe very naturally andeasily swings outward, and does not fully regain the parallel positionby the time the sole of the shoe reaches the floor or pavement. Acontinuance of such. a movement finally establishes the out-toe inghabit. There is also a very unwise custom of teaching children to toeoutward; and the ill effects are everywhere in evidence. My inventionseeks the prevention of this abnormal shifting of the foot while in theact of making a step; and I prefer to style it a footstep corrector forthat reason. It is constructed and applied as I shall now set forth inthe detailed description of the drawings herein.

I employ the numeral 1 to indicate a heel for a conventional article offootwear, such as a shoe, shown in part at 2. Embeddedin the heel is abar or body 3, which is secured against the lower face of the lowest butone of the lifts or layers l. This bar 3 is preferably of rubber; thoughother suitable material may be employed; and it is somewhat flat andelongated in shape; comprising enlarged or widened ends 5 and 6,connected by an intermediate or central portion. The extremity 5 issquare or spear-headed in shape, while the extremity 6 is approximatelytriangular, or somewhat like the quadrant of a circle. The extremity 5is lo cated at the inside corner at the front of the heel; and theextremity 6 islocated at the rear of the heel, toward the outer side ofthe same. The bar or body 3, therefore, extends diagonally across thebottom of the heel from the inside of the foot in front to the outerside at the back; and these eX- tremities conform to the outline of theheel adjacent to them. The body 3 is made thick enough to projectsomewhat from the bot tom of the heel; and to this end I make the lowestlift or layer lthinner than the bar 3.

This lowest lift comprises two sections 7 and 8, one on each side of-thebarB, and conforming along their inner edges to the 'sldes' of the barto give a finished appearance. In order to secure the body 3 in place, 1provide holes 9, having countersunk outer ends 10 to receive washers l1.Fastening devices, such as nails 12, pass through the washers 1.1 andthe holes 9, into the heel; and the heads of the nails, as shown in Fig.8, will be above the lower surface of the bar 3 and thus be preventedfrom coming into contact with the ground. Preferably four nails areemployed; two for the extremity 6, one for the extremity 5, and one forthe connecting or central portion. 1 also employ cement on the upper orinner face of the bar 3 to make it stick to the adjacent lift 4t andassist the nails 12.

Other ways of securing the bar 3 in place may be devised. .ln themodification illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, I dispense with the nails andprovide the central portion 13 with ribs or flanges 1 f along its sides,between the enlarged ends 5 and 6. These flanges will be pressed againstthe heel by the sections 7 and 8; and, in combination with cement allover the top or inner face of the bar 3, will answer the purpose verywell.

I shall now show the utility and value of my invention. The majority ofpedestrians, as above stated, put down the back edge of the heel first;while a few shove or drag the feet along as they walk. My step correctorprovides for both of these movements. If one strikes the ground orpavement first with the back outer edge of the shoe-heel, the rounded orquadrantal end 6 of the bar or body 3 will stick or cling to the ground,floor, or pavement, while the leather at S, being of a less frictionalnature, permits the toe of each shoe to swing inward toward the other onthe opposite foot; thereby producing the correct or parallel step. Ifthe pedestrian shoves or drags his feet along, then the inner forwardcorner of the shoeheel, where is placed the square end 5 of the bar 3,will stick or cling to the pavement; and the leather at 7 now permitsthe toe of the'shoe to swing inward toward the other: thereby producingthe correct or parallel step in this case also. 7

The step corrector bar 3 is made from one sixty-fourth to onethirty-second of an inch thicker than the leather sections 7 and 8 oneither side. This greater thickness not only increases the power of thebar to stick or cling to the pavement; but also gives the additionaladvantage of an almost noiseless step; and the body 3 is much lighterthan the ordinary solid rubber heel besides.

My invention, by correcting the out-toeing habit, thus transfers'thebodys weight from the arch or inner side of the sole of the foot to theouter side of the sole; thereby re lievingthe arches of all undueweight, and making it possible for an arch which is broken down, and outof adjustment to re turn to its normal condition. Also the stepcorrector bar, bein a little thicker than the layer of leather on eitherside, so reduces the jar in Walking that it is hardly perceptible; andthe bar therefore is of greater value in protecting the nervous sys temfrom destructive shocks than even the solid rubber heel; which ofnecessity is made of harder rubber. Again, my invention, as a means ofprotection against out-toeing anc its resulting evils, even for thosenot afflicted with arch troubles, is of no small value; and a furtheradvantage of my footstep corrector over solid rubber heels is secured bythe open spaces or recesses provided by the countersunk or enlargedouter ends of the holes 9 receiving the nailheads. These recessesproduce suction on a wet pavement, and obviate the danger of the wearerslipping.

My step corrector bars 3 are of course made for right and left shoes, soas to be employed on both heels. Figs. 1 and 4 illustrate such a bar onthe left heel; and Figs. 2, and 3 a bar on the right heel. The bars areboth therapeutic and preventive.

The extremities 5 and 6 are the primary ground-engaging portions of mystep-corrector; though of course when the Wearers whole weight isexerted on either foot, the whole bar will be pressed firmly down on thesurface of the ground; whether the latter be pavement, floor, or earth.If desired, the intermediate portion between the ends 5 and 6 can beomitted. My invention is applicable to boots as well as shoes, or to anyarticle of footwear, in fact.

I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction herein set forth;but reserve to myself the right to make such changes in the shape, sizeand arrangement of parts as fairly fall within the scope and spirit ofmy invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureand protect by Letters Patent of the United States 1s:

1. The combination, with the heel of an article of footwear, of meansassociated with the heel and projecting below the bottom thereof forproviding a ground-engaging portion at the back of the heel and to oneside of the same, and another groundengaging portion adjacent to acorner of the heel and diagonally opposite the first-named 1 portion.

The combination, with the heel of an article of footwear, of meansassociated with the heel and projecting below the bottom thereof forproviding a ground-engaging portion at the back of the heel and to oneside thereof, and another ground-engaging portion adjacent to the innercorner of the heel and diagonally opposite the first-named portion.

3. The combination, with the heel of an article of footwear, of a bodyembedded in the heel but projecting from the bottom thereof, the bodyextending diagonally across the heel from the inner corner at the frontto the outer edge at the rear, and having enlarged portions at itsextremities.

1. The combination, with the heel of an article of footwear, of a bodyembedded in the heel and projecting from the bottom thereof, the bodyextending diagonally across the heel from the front inner corner to theouter edge at the rear, the body having enlarged portions at itsextremities c0nforming to the outline of the heel, said body also havingcountersunk holes to enable it to be secured in place.

Signed at Minneapolis in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesotathis 13th day of May A. D. 1914.

FRANK HENRY RUSS.

Witnesses:

Jno. GERHARD, L. L. STANCHFIELD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C.

